25th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C
Sunday September 21, 2025
Mass Readings for the 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C
- First Reading – Amos 8:4-7: “Hear this, you who trample upon the needy and destroy the poor of the land!”
- Responsorial Psalm – Psalm 113: “Praise the Lord who lifts up the poor.”
- Second Reading –1 Timothy 2:1-8: “First of all, I ask that supplications, prayers, petitions, and thanksgivings be offered for everyone, for kings and for all in authority, that we may lead a quiet and tranquil life in all devotion and dignity.”
- Gospel – Luke 16:1-13: “For the children of this world are more prudent in dealing with their own generation than are the children of light.”
Themes for the 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C
The readings for the 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C ask if we are as energetic in our spiritual lives as we are in acquiring wealth and the respect of others. In the first reading we are warned against cheating others and trampling on their rights. The psalm reminds us that God cares about the poor. In the second reading, Paul reminds us to pray for everyone, including those in authority. In the gospel Jesus tells the parable of the Dishonest Steward, who used his wits to gain favor.
- Using my influence for good
- Pursuing the spiritual life with all our energy
- Cheating
- Rights of the poor
See the Homilies and Reflections section and the More Thoughts section for further expansion on these readings and some reflection questions for the 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C.
Resources for the 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C
The Savvy Steward – A Lesson Plan on Wealth
This lesson plan on the parable of the dishonest steward will help youth understand that we must have a healthy relationship with wealth and materials goods. They cannot become more important than the Lord.
Show Me the Money Game
Show Me the Money is just a fun game played with play money. It is meant to get everyone interacting and there is no real lesson here.
For Love or Money: A Lesson Plan on Wealth
This For Love or Money lesson plan on wealth will help youth consider how material possessions and wealth can be an obstacle to discipleship.
Penny Chin Game
Penny Chin is a funny game where players try to balance a penny on their chins without tilting their heads back or touching it with their hands. There is a trick!
Pope Francis’ Five Finger Prayer
Pope Francis’ Five Finger Prayer is a way to remember who to pray for. Download a printable PDF of this prayer aid.
Parable of the Talents
This lesson plan and reflection on the Parable of the Talents will help youth consider how they use their gifts and talents to grow the Kingdom of God.
Homilies and Reflections for the 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C
Don’t Demonize—or Divinize—the Powerful
From Bishop Robert Barron. “Friends, the first and second readings this Sunday beautifully show both sides of Catholic social teaching: the balance between recognizing political, economic, and social power, and criticizing the abuse of that power. We should not demonize our leaders; we pray for them, and we recognize their importance. But we should not divinize them either; we are deeply aware of the ways that their power can be corrupted.”
Finding Security in Relationships
From Fr. Richard Rohr. “We’re wired to focus on short-term, practical gains. And, of course, money often does solve our short-term problems. But I hear Jesus saying that a long-term solution is to seek relationship over money. … Some folks who may not have a 401k or retirement fund rely on their family and community as insurance. They stick together much better than many financially comfortable people do. When we’re well off, we often don’t need or care about one another. ” Continue reading.
Learning Detachment from Your Stuff
Sometimes the things that we own end up owning us. Detachment prevents this from happening. Fr. Mike Schmitz explains that it’s not so much having a lot of stuff that’s the problem: it’s being attached to those things, and letting them have a sense of control over your life.
The Unjust Steward
From Bishop Robert Barron. In a puzzling parable, Jesus praises a man who is a self-absorbed cheat. What the Lord notices in the man’s dubious behavior are three things of spiritual importance: he knows that he is in crisis; he makes an honest self-assessment; and, most importantly, he acts.
Prudent Stewards
A reflection for the 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C from Scott Hahn. “The steward in today’s Gospel confronts the reality that he can’t go on living the way he has been. He is under judgment. He must give account for what he has done.” Continue reading.
The Moral of the Story
A reflection for the 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C from Loyola Press. “Today’s Gospel sounds puzzling to contemporary readers, but it can be made less so by considering the economic system which stands behind the parable.” Continue reading.
How to Avoid a Fractured Spirituality
Also from Word on Fire. “If you look at what all successful people have in common—from sports to entertainment to business—it’s that they have a singular devotion to a specific goal.” Continue reading.
More Thoughts for the 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C
The Squandering Steward
The steward is described as squandering his master’s money. This is the same word that is used to describe the prodigal son’s spending habits. The steward was careless in a different manner though.
He is trying to make money for his master by loaning out money, but he is also trying to make a commission for himself on each loan. In his enthusiasm to make money for himself, he loans out too much of his master’s money. Now the rich man has too little cash on hand.
When asked to make an account, he meets with the debtors and changes the terms of their loans. He might be removing his own commission. Or he might be cheating his master of the interest on the loan. In either case, he is being shrewd. He knows the debtors will be happy at the change of terms and perhaps help him out as a token of their appreciation.
This man is an unlikely hero for this parable. But Jesus is telling us that even greedy people see the value of generosity. So we, as disciples of Jesus, should be even more able to recognize how important it is to be kind and compassionate to others. We know all we have comes from God, so we should be willing to share what we have.
Reflection Questions for the 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C
- Do I have a healthy relationship with possessions and money?
- Is there something I feel is owed to me which I can let go of?
- Am I able to receive the generosity of others with grace?
Quotes and Social Media Graphics for the 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C
No servant can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other.
You cannot serve both God and mammon.
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